An honest taxi driver in the USA is making news after returning $187,000 cash which a passenger forgot in his cab.

When Raymond MacCausland, a 72-year-old taxi driver, dropped off a Saturday afternoon fare in Boston, he didn’t expect to make such a discovery.

But in good Samaritan fashion, he returned the enormous sum.

MacCausland, nicknamed “Buzzy”, turned in the bundles of cash to Boston police after discovering the money in a backpack that was left in the back seat of his cab. The money belongs to a homeless man who had just cashed his inheritance, Boston police said.

“That’s the way I was brought up. I was told to do the right thing,” MacCausland said.

The “upstanding, honest” cab driver of nearly 50 years found the money while searching in the backpack for some form of identification, Boston police said.

About a mile into the trip, the passenger asked the cab driver to stop the car and wait outside a motel for five minutes, MacCausland said.

Half an hour passed, and MacCausland became concerned. He entered the motel and asked the front desk about the man, but the workers claimed to have never seen him, MacCausland said. He returned to his cab and found the bag and the cash.

Boston police were able to contact the motel and find the man, verifying that the money was his, said Boston police Officer Rachel McGuire.

The man had just cashed his inheritance and he had a receipt to prove it, McGuire said. Police were due to release the cash on Tuesday.

“This hackney driver exhibited exemplary behavior and his honest deed should be recognised,” Police Commissioner William Evans said in a statement. “His actions represent the high standards that our department has for our drivers.”

When Boston police asked the man whether he would like to reward MacCausland, he gave the driver a $100 bill, MacCausland said. “I get that much for returning a lost wallet.”

•Adapted from a CNN report. Photo shows honest taxi driver Raymond MacCausland.

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